But Amnon Had A Friend

I have an unusual hobby that I engage in every so often. Every time I attend a church conference, I always try to take at least one of the messages I hear and put the essence of it into poetic form. One of the messages that was preached by Elder Frazier was entitled “But Amnon Had A Friend”. It was a warning to avoid the downfall of Amnon, which was confiding in and listening to the bad, ungodly advice given by his friend, Jonadab. I am thankful for this timely message for young people.(and us older folks too)We really need to be careful about the friendships we have, because if they are not right, we could lose out with God and have our lives become a disaster.  To read about what happened to Amnon in 2 Samuel 13, click here.

Here is my poem. This form of poetry is called a quatern.

 

“But Amnon had a friend”

To whom he did attend

But what Jonadab did advise

Led to Amnon’s sad demise.

 

 

 

These words we cannot amend

“But Amnon had a friend”

May their message be your guide

Take care in whom you confide.

 

 

 

The struggle that raged in his heart

He could have taken to God at the start

“But Amnon had a friend”

Whose counsel led to a tragic end.

 

 

 

When temptation, your mind comes to haunt

Let God be your true confidant

Lest the same error make you descend

“But Amnon had a friend.

 

written 6/24/11

 

Wrong Number or A God Thing?

I just had the most incredible experience, but before I can explained what happened, I need to backtrack to last night.

As we were wrapping up a wonderful New Year’s Eve service at church and getting ready to go home, I thought I would check my cell phone to see if there were any missed calls, Happy New Year wishes, etc. I had received one text message from a number I didn’t recognize. Whoever left this message was not somebody that I had in my address book.  The text wished me a Happy New Year and urged me to send this on to 15 of my best buds, so that I would have a good new year. It also mentioned if I didn’t do this that I wouldn’t have a good 2011. I just thought to myself, “this has got to be a wrong number”, and I quickly brushed it aside until the next morning. Late this morning, around 10 or 11, I was telling my daughter about this text I got from somebody in Oregon that was probably a wrong number. She suggested that I text the person and ask them who they are. So I just sent a text that said, “I’m not sure I know who you are. Could you please identify yourself?” The person responded back that her name was Terri from Oregon and she mentioned that she was a friend of some guy that I do not know. I texted back and told her that I didn’t know a Terri from Oregon, but Happy New Year anyhow. She then texted back and asked if I knew this guy she mentioned. I texted back and told her no, my name is Carol, and I live in California. She texted me back and named a city in California where she used to live. I told her that I was about 25 miles from that city, and then I felt like the Lord prompted me to ask something. I mentioned a particular church in that city, told her the pastor there was a friend of ours and asked if she knew where it was. She responded that she did and had a sister that lived right down the street from that church. I said “small world, isn’t it?”, and then I asked her if she went to church in Oregon and told of of 2 friends we have up in Oregon and how we had visited their churches. It turns out she lives 10 minutes away from one of the cities I mentioned. I texted her back and asked, “Wrong number or is this a God thing? Anyway, to make a long story a little shorter, we conversed through texting for a good hour. She mentioned that she felt like this was a sign from God, and she may end up visiting the church in McMinnville that I mentioned to her. (Naomi, if you’re reading this, it’s your church!) One of her sons actually lives right down the street from the church, and she passes by it all the time! I started a conversation with this woman as a total stranger and had made a friend by the time we were done. She wants to keep in touch. There is no telling what God is going to do. You just never know!

 

The Kind Of Friend I Want And Would Hope To Be

“Oh the comfort – inexpressible comfort of the feeling safe with a person. Having to neither weigh thoughts nor measure of words, but pouring them all right out, just as they are chaff and grain together; certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them. Keep what is worth keeping and then with the breath of kindness, blow the rest away.”

Dinah Maria Murlock Craick

1866

 

Reunion

This poem is dedicated to my dear friend, May.

Time and distance can cause

some relationships to

decay, but

that has not been the case

with you,

old friend.

When I heard your voice

again, you sounded exactly

the same, and suddenly,

I was transported back to

our teen years.

Remembering the little things;

Your ankles cracking

every morning when

you got out of bed.

Filling your closet space

with…………………

those dreaded banana peels,

and other scenarios

too numerous to mention.

But we are not kids

anymore, and some painful

blows have come your way.

I see you still

fighting the fight,

and I am reminded that

not everything which

is crushed goes

in the discard pile.

Tear the delicate petal

of a rose in

tiny pieces and,

there is still sweet fragrance

to enjoy.

And so friend,

Let’s march on.

Will I see you

in your state?

Or will you visit

in my state?

I do not know.

But

there is a

City that awaits us!

7-19-10

 

Surprise Party

Yesterday was a day I have been looking forward to for a long time. We had a surprise 50th birthday party for my sister Karen. It actually wasn’t a total surprise. She did kind of suspect that something was going to happen. Last year Karen threw 2 surprise parties for a couple of special people that were turning 50. One of them was her husband Mike, and the other one was my husband. There were a couple of things at this party though that were surprises for Karen. The first one was that my brother John and his family and my brother Bob were at the party. They were able to come via Skype(webcam). When Karen showed up at her son’s house and the door to the house was open Bob, John and his family were there on the computer screen yelling “surprise!”.

The second surprise was that Mike had arranged a week long trip for him and Karen to go to Hawaii. They are in Oahu now as I type and will spend a few days there and then go to the Big Island. One of the really fun things about this party is that each of us siblings put on a skit about something we remember from our childhood with Karen. It was hilarious acting those things out and reliving the memories. Playing Pin The Reading Glasses On The 50 Year Old was a hoot too. I’ll post some pictures below.

 

I’m Thankful Four – Day #4

1.  I’m thankful for the relatives and friends who are coming to share Thanksgiving with us today.  Each of them makes this day special in their own unique way.

2. The food that will grace our table today – Turkey, stuffing(made by Molly my niece, no “holy smoke” stuffing this year from Kiki – if you want to know the story behind that click here. )Greek stuffing made by my husband, Florentine lasagna, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, English pea salad, green salad, homemade French bread, cranberries, Nilla Praline cheesecake, cherry cheesecake, pumpkin pie and a few other yummy desserts.

3. The bustling about in the kitchen on the 2 days before Thanksgiving. Tuesday night Jennifer and I were in the kitchen doing the prep work to make the lasagna. She did most of the work. All I did was coach when necessary and slice the mozzarella cheese. We had a good time working together. On Thanksgiving eve, the hubby was in the kitchen working on his Greek stuffing, and Jen is making Nilla Praline Cheesecake and french bread.  Just the comaraderie of being in the kitchen together is cool.

4. The Thanksgiving holiday itself – Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I enjoy the fact that it seems to be the least commercialized of all the holidays. It’s a day that really makes me stop and count my blessings, and life is more enjoyable when we stop to consider God’s goodness in our lives.

A HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL MY BLOGGER FRIENDS!!

 

I’m Thankful Four – Day 2

1.

 

 

 

The Bible – I am so thankful for God’s Holy Word, the Bible. There is no other book like it! I can’t begin to tell you how many times I have received strength, encouragement and direction through the teaching, preaching and reading of the Word of God. This book is inexhaustible. It’s so amazing to read a passage you have read before and have God show you something that you didn’t see the last time you read. It is our road map to Heaven, and without it, we would be lost. Thank you, Lord, for you divinely inspired, infallible, holy,  powerful,  unchangeable Word!

2. My church – When I say the church, I don’t mean the building, although I am thankful to be in our present location. I am talking about the people, my brothers and sister in Christ. I’m thankful for the way my life has been blessed through rubbing shoulders with all these fine folks, and it is a joy when you can see your brothers and sister growing in God.

3.

 

 

 

Our house – We came close to losing our home several times this year, but somehow God has seen fit to keep us in it, and I’m very thankful. We’ve made some great memories here, and it would be hard to leave this place, so I’m thankful that God is helping us to work things out with our loan situation. Thank you to all of you who have been praying for us too.

4. My job – I really had no desire to go back to work after being at home for the last 13 years. I had no idea what I would do either. I thank God for answering prayer and blessing me with a good part time job. The pay is better than I expected, and it is rewarding to be able to work with these children and their families.  I’m believing God to use me to reach out to these with whom I have contact.

 

The Big Surprise

Do you enjoy surprises? Someone in our family is going to receive a big surprise today, and that’s all I can say until later. 

 

Okay, it’s Sunday evening, and it’s all over. We went to a surprise 50th birthday party for my wonderful brother-in-law, Mike. Everybody did a great job keeping this a secret. When him and his wife came to the door of their son Jeremy’s house, and everybody yelled “Surprise!”, Mike was stunned. Probably the neatest thing about this birthday was that Mike’s mom, who is in her 70′s was able to fly out from Chicago to be there for the shindig. She was hiding back in one of the bedrooms when he first came, and from a cell phone, she called him on the house phone there. His mom asked him if he was surprised and how the party was going. She told him that she wished she could be there. He said, “Are you sure you’re not already here? I’m going to look for you. You’re probably in the hallway.” What was really funny was as he said that, his mom was actually coming down the hallway. Mike was heading toward the hallway, and that is where they met. He was just joking about the possibility of her being there.

Mike and his mom.

 

It was a wonderful party with a fine mix of family and friends totaling around 40. We ate some delicious grub, participated in an Older Than Dirt Quiz (yipee! I wasn’t the high scorer), played a little game to see how much we knew about Mike(my brother Tom beat me by one point) and watched Mike open his gifts. Mike’s son Jeremy put together a very nice slide show presentation about Mike’s life. Probably the most touching thing of all was when the floor was opened up to any who wanted to share what Mike has meant to them or how he has influenced them. Over the years, my brother-in-law has been a home Bible study teacher, care pastor, musician and a great friend, and it was very special to hear of the godly influence that he has had in many lives that were represented there. I’d like to share a little in my next post on how Mike was instrumental in bringing the gospel to our family. For now, here are a few more pictures of his party.

Mike with long time friend, co-worker and brother in Christ, Calvin.

Mike’s cake – One of his hobbies is golfing.

Special “over the hill” hat

Mike and his new “over the hill” autograph dog, complete with reading glasses.

My sister Ann and I!

 

Wilderness Wonders

1Samuel 23:15

And David saw that Saul was come out to seek his life: and David was in the wilderness of Ziph in a wood.

1Samuel 23:16

And Jonathan Saul’s son arose, and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God.

This morning, as I was reading my Bible, these verses just seemed to leap out at me.  David was literally running for his life, running from King Saul who wanted to kill him.  He was in a wilderness, which in itself can be a very scary place. How blessed he was to have a friend in King Saul’s own son, Jonathan. The Bible says that Jonathan strengthened his hand in God.  No doubt, David was afraid at this time, for the first words out of Jonathan’s mouth in verse 17 are “Fear not.”

Sure, God could have come down Himself to David to assure him that everything was going to be allright, but most of the time it seems that God chooses to work through people. Sometimes it’s just reassuring to have someone with skin on, someone right there that you can see. I thought of the many times in my life when I have been afraid or discouraged. How many times has God sent someone to strengthen my hand in God! Many times it has been a preacher. Some times it has been a family member or close friend. God has even used bloggers before who had no idea what I was going through, but the words that they had written in a post ministered to me. Have you ever had your hand strengthened in God? I’m very grateful for the many times that I have felt the divine touch of God, but I’m also grateful for the times when he has used someone else with skin on to encourage me, comfort me or give me assurance.

If you are reading this and facing a “wilderness” today, I pray God will send someone that can strengthen your hand in Him. If everything is rosy, may you be used by God to strengthen someone’s hand in the Lord today.

 

Tis THE HUMAN TOUCH in this world that counts,

The touch of your hand and mine,

Which means far more to the fainting heart

Than shelter and bread and wine;

For shelter is gone when the night is o’er,

And bread lasts only a day,

But the touch of the hand and the sound of the voice

Sing on in the soul alway.

 

SPENCER MICHAEL FREE

 

My Favorite 49er!

Kiki with niece Abby on Christmas Day 2008

 

On Sunday, my wonderful elder sister, Karen(affectionately known as “Kiki”)celebrated her 49th birthday.  I am blessed and honored to have her as my biological sister, friend, confidante and sister in Christ.  She’s a great lady, and I’m glad that she’s a part of my life.  I have many precious memories of my sister from childhood to the present.  One thing that I’ll never forget from our childhood was the time we were playing “doctor” in our basement in Chicago. Karen, who was the doctor, decided that her patient(me) needed some medicine.  She had me open up my mouth,tilt my head back, and she began pouring a cup of medicine(some grape juice) down my throat using a funnel.  For some reason, I thought this was funny, and I started laughing. Suddenly, I wasn’t laughing anymore, because I started choking. When Karen saw that I was choking and had a terrified look on my face, she grabbed my hand and started dragging me up the stairs to take me to mom.  Fortunately, about half way up the stairs, I caught my breathe and the panic passed.  A more recent funny memory is the “Holy Smoke” stuffing she made for Thanksgiving in 2007. She had made her stuffing at her house on the stovetop before bringing it over to my place. She knew she had burnt the stuffing but thought it had only affected the bottom of the pot.  This was not the case, and after we had asked the blessing upon our food, one by one we began to discover that the stuffing was horrible. Then the jokes started, and it was probably the most hilarious Thanksgiving we ever had.  I could go on, but that would make for a very long post.

I am thankful though for the good and not so good times we have shared together. Keek, I hope your 49th year is the best ever.  Happy Birthday, and I love you bunches!